Earthquake Reported In East Kingston

EAST KINGSTON, NH — If you heard booming on this Seacoast this morning, it was an earthquake. Geologists are reporting a 2.7 magnitude quake struck off North Road in East Kingston this morning, according to earthquake.usgs.gov. The quake was registered at about 6.3 km in depth.

The boom – which at least one person on Twitter suggested last as long as 10 seconds – was reported at just before 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 15, 2018.

It was felt as far away as a number of Essex County communities in northeastern Massachusetts.

This is the second reported earthquake in less than 48 hours in New Hampshire. A 2.0 magnitude earthquake was reported in Sanborton on Tuesday night.

There have been about 20 earthquakes reported in the central New Hampshire area during the past few years.

A year and two days ago, a 2.2 magnitude quake was reported in Bedford. In January 2017, a 1.9 quake was reported in Laconia.

Numerous earthquakes were reported in 2016, including a 2.9 quake in Warner in March. During the past two years, earthquakes have been reported in Concord, Contoocook, Sanbornton, and Warner, as well.

A 1.5 magnitude quake was reported in Plymouth in July 2015, with 2.3 and 2.1 magnitude earthquakes reported in Sanborton and Warner in April 2015, according to reports. A 2.3 magnitude earthquake hit Boscawen in May 2015.

In October 2014, a 2.5 magnitude quake hit Contoocook just a few miles south of this morning's rumbling. A year before that, a 1.7 quake hit East Side Drive in Concord.

Late last year, researchers in New Jersey reported finding a mass of warm rock beneath northern New England, including New Hampshire and Vermont. The data gathered by geophysicists suggest that a major volcanic eruption is expected in the region – millions of years from now.

Image via earthquake.usgs.gov.